NHL says enters into deal to sell Phoenix Coyotes

PHOENIX (Reuters) - A little more than a month after buying the Phoenix Coyotes, the National Hockey League said on Friday it entered into a deal to sell the struggling franchise to investor group Ice Edge Holdings.

"The NHL and Ice Edge Holdings announced today that they have entered into a letter of intent to proceed in attempting to document and close a proposed transaction pursuant to which Ice Edge would purchase the Phoenix Coyotes franchise," NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly said in a statement.

"While much remains to be done, the NHL looks forward to working closely with Ice Edge to bring the sale to conclusion as expeditiously as possible," Daly said, adding that Ice Edge aims to keep the Coyotes in the Phoenix suburb of Glendale.

Additional details of the planned deal, including a sale price, were not immediately available.

A U.S. bankruptcy judge approved on November 2 the sale of the Coyotes by the team's previous owner to the NHL for $140 million. The Coyotes have never made money since moving to the Glendale from Winnipeg, Manitoba in 1996.

(Reporting by David Schwartz in Phoenix, Arizona; writing by Jim Christie in San Francisco)